It's Not Always What We Think It Is
by MermaidOdair
Summary: She thought it couldn't get worse. It did. A rameria hunger games AU, requested by lalieud on tumblr.


Ramiro Ordonéz is a boy from district 12, just like many others. Just like many other he is poor, but the whole district is. Just like many other he doesn't have his parents anymore. Just like many other he has to take care of his young little sister. He was sitting on the seventeen year old line, like many others. And just like many others he was reaped in the Hunger Games.

To say he was devastated when he was reaped was not a misunderstanding. Yes he was. After all who would take care of his little sister when he died?

His eyes catch the crying girl in the audience, yet too young to be in the line for reaping. She si sad. He lets a tear fall.

His mind went solely on his own thoughts when he was up there on stage, but he did notice the blonde girl walking up there too. She was surely going to be his district partner.

"What's your name, my dear?" The capitol representant, Justina, asked.

Funny, she doesn't' need to ask, their names are read when they are reaped. Unless this girl is a volunteer.

"Valeria." She spoke "Valeria Gutierrez, and I am a volunteer for district twelve."

Volunteer. Volunteer?

District 12 has never had any volunteers in the whole history of the games. Rama can't help but wonder why her, why this pretty blonde is volunteering for the games, and why there's a certain something in her eye. Something Rama can't decide what it is. sadness? Regret? Maybe the loss of all hope?

"Let's all clap for our two wonderful tributes of district twelve for the seventy-two hunger games!" The escort said and clapped alone. No one dared to clap in times like these.

Ramiro walked to the building, when he would get to say goodbye to his family. he and Valeria stayed on the same room -much due to twelve's poverty they only had one tribute room- and his eyes only sparkled when Alelí walked inside the room. She was with his friends Mar, Tacho and Jazmin and she jumped right on his arms, hugging him tight.

"Come back." She whispered. Although she was too young too be reaped, she was a smart girl and already understood that no one comes back from the games. At least no one from twelve. "Try."

"I will."

Their time is short and she soon will have to be taken away from him, but with the six year old still in his arms he turns to his friends and says "Please take care of her, take care of my angel."

"We will." Jaz says "But only until you come back. I know you will."

Some say jaz can predict the future.

He hopes she is right.

When the guards come he kisses his sister cheek and watches her cry as she is taken away.

Once they leave, he notices there was no one else being taken away of the room but his friends. There was no one here but his friends and sister.

No one came to see Valeria.

The girl is sitting on the chair and doesn't speak a word. He thinks about asking why no one is here to see her, but deep down he knows why. She doesn't have anyone.

"Hi, I'm ramiro, but you can call me Rama." He spoke,a d sat on the couch next to her. She surely heard his name in reaping and he heard hers, but they'll be stuck together for a while, both in training and maybe in the arena so they might as well just get along.

"I'm valeria." She spoke and looked him in the eye. Somehow he knew there was more to her than this though facade she appeared to be. "You can call me Vale."

He smiles at her and she looks down, they don't say another word.

The escort comes inside and tells them it's time to leave for the train.

"Come on, I am sure you are all over to moon with excitement to meet your mentor." Justina speaks. She tries to lift their spirits but she too knows it's in vain.

District Twelve has only one mentor, her name is Cielo. No one is really sure why she won ten years ago, but to be quite honest nor Rama nor Vale care about that now.

"Hello." She begins with a sad smile. Cielo knows what they are going to do, what they need to do. It's hard and sad but they don't have other choice and no other option. The only thing she can do is help them. "I'm here for whatever you need me, I'll try to help with fighting and general knowledge of survival skills. Above all, I'm sorry for all of this."

"So am I." Rama speaks. Valeria walks away and before she leaves the room she asks where her room is.

"Why?"

"I wanna be alone, where is my room?" She asks again, she's a bit angry now, but Rama can see deep down is some sort of sadness and maybe a general wish of loneliness.

Rama is even more drawn to this girl now. He can't help but wish to help her. It's what he knows how to do. He cannot see a sad person and not desire to help her.

Even if to come home he may have to kill her.

He hopes there' no need for him to do that. He doubts he could.

He meets her again during dinner that same day, they are both amazed by how much food there is in that table.

"Whoa! this can feed an army!" Valeria speaks, as she looks at the table. She had never seen this much food in her life, not even when her adoptive parents were still alive.

"Well if you two wanna come home then we better eat to get strength, huh?" Justina speaks and they all seat at the table. Justina looks weirdly at the two kids who can't stop eating as fast as they can. "There's no need to eat that fast, kids. The food will not run away from you."

"It might as well do, I never saw food like this." Vale makes a snarky comment.

Rama laughs at her words as he eats a piece of a meat he has never tried before. He can swear she smiled at him.

The rest of the dinner goes smoothly and soon the two young victor must go back their rooms to as their mentor said "sleep and gather energy for the parade tomorrow."

But how can he sleep knowing that tomorrow his life will change forever?

Uncertain of what to do, Ramiro walks back to the first room he entered in the train, a common area with a window that allows him to see the outside and is quiet and lonely.

He sits by the window and stares to the outside, to the fading woods that look like a blur of green with the speed of the train.

he can feel that there is someone behind him, watching him from afar. That person moves closer and closer until it sits next to him, by his side.

"It's quiet here, huh?" He speaks, and hopes it didn't sound rude as if he wanted her to go.

"Perfect for looking at the stars." Valeria speaks.

He can't help but wonder, can't help but ask. "Why?"

"Why? Why what?" Valeria asks defensively. "Why I volunteered?"

"Yeah."

"Because it couldn't get worse." Vale answers and wraps her arms around herself. "If I die, it's over. If I win, it gets better."

"That's one point of view." Rama answers.

"Then what's yours, Tronco?"

"Tronco?" He asks, dumbfounded by her nickname for him.

"Yes, Rama as in a tree branch so Tronco as in the tree." She replies seriously. He laughs.

"Fine, Gata."

"Why Gata?"

"I don't know." He answers and gets up. "I just think it matches you."

He leaves then, and Vale is left alone in the room. She lets one tear fall for him and another for her lost future.

Unable to sleep she stays there for hours, reflecting on her own short life. She thinks back to her adoptive parents, and how they were abruptly taken away from her by the govern. She wasn't older that the small girl who came to see Ramiro earlier that day, and she can't help but make the connecting that this girl is going to be as lonely and miserable as she was when she was left alone.

Since that night all those years ago, nearly ten to be exact, she has turned cold and fearful. How can she let anyone close if all they are going to do is hurt her? That is all that ever happens, she let's someone inside all the walls she builds and she gets hurt. It happened with her parents and it will happen with anyone else, like Rama for example. She can see he is good and nice, but he will hurt her like anyone else. Even if he doesn't want to. After all only one person can come out alive.

She elects to ignore that thought for now and go to bed.

Deep down she knows she can't do that.

It doesn't take long for morning to come and Rama can't really believe what he sees when he looks outside his window.

The sooner forest image it's slowly turning into the one of a big city, with buildings higher than the ones he had ever seen before. Alelí would like this. He thinks quietly. He needs to go home for her, it's hard already with only him there for her, it would be even worse with her alone.

He can't afford to be sad and miserable right now, so he knows he has to do something. He has to fight, for himself and for his sister.

The breakfast table is as full as the dinner one was last night and even though it is the second time the two district twelve tributes cannot help but being amazed by it still.

"If all these food was given to the poor kids we see all the time." Valeria mutters.

Rama can't help but think that the cold tough girl does have a heart after all.

Cielo agrees with Vale with a smile. "I know, we need to make a change, but I can't do that on my own."

Vale remembers when Cielo won all those years ago. her parents had just left and all the food that comes for the winning district sure helped her during the first year. But on the next year, and all years after that, no one from twelve won, so all the extra food - a gift from the Capitol to the winning district- didn't came to her anymore.

Cielo sure tries to help her district, but the Capitol didn't allow her to, apparently a victor "can't do nothing with his money that affects politics."

That bothers her deeply, so she secretly gives money to the local orphanage but that doesn't help everyone. She only hopes this year she is luckier and able to bring one of these kids home.

A victor's life isn't a easy and pretty as everyone imagines it to be.

Or better yet, as the Capitol makes it look like.

It even makes her wish nobody won, just so they didn't need to live like her.

"Come on kids, eat faster, we just arrived!" Justina beams.

Both seventeen year old tributes knew from watching the games -forced to watch is a better description, after all they kill you if you don't- that all tributes must go through the parade, where they are shown off like meat in the butcher, ready for slaughter, ready to be sold as entertainment to the Capitol and as a reminder for the districts.

"Ready to wear a stupid costume and pretend you wanna be here? cause I don't." Valeria makes another snarky comment. Typical Vale.

"Thought you wanted to be here." Rama marks.

"Well, as I told you, Tronco. I'm here because it cannot get worse." She replies with a smirk. "Or maybe it can." that last part was only said in her head, the words not daring to be told, knowing she would seem weaker if she said so.

The walking outside the train was quiet, at least for them. No Capitol citizen ever roots for twelve anyway, so there is no warm welcome. Only one or two people are there, usually to bet if twelve will die first or if it will be another poor district.

"To be honest the whole games thing is just sick." vale tells him after Justina and Cielo drop them off at the 'fix it room', where according to Justina 'they must get ready and pretty for the games'.

"I can't help but agree with you, Gata."

The parade prep was awful, at least to Valeria it was. People were all over her,cutting her hair, scrubbing her skin until it was soft and applying wax to remove every single hair that was in her body except for her hair, which was cut but still her usual long.

Truly a nightmare.

She was then escorted to a room to meet her designer who was supposed to dress her accordingly to her district. or whatever that means. Truly she doesn't care much.

Her designer - a woman named Malvina, who looks like every other Capitol citizen with colorful hair and odd clothing- hands her a black dress that shows a little way too much on the sides.

"To look like the thing you guys produce in the mines" She speaks.

"You mean coal?"

"yes, yes that thing." She finishes "You look so pretty. Now get over there and get sponsor so you can win."

Valeria leaves the room as soon as she can, meeting Rama near the carriage. If there's one thing Vale didn't understand is why they use horses to move the tributes if they have much higher technology.

"Wow." Rama says when he sees her.

"Too bad?"

"Nope, definitely pretty. Different, but pretty all the same." Pretty all the same? so he thought she was pretty before?

"You're not too bad yourself." Truly he wasn't. he looked very handsome in a all black suit with his blonde hair slicked back. He was pretty and nice. Maybe if the games never happened and they had meet under different circumstances they would have had a chance. A chance for something else, she can't quite wrap her finger around what that could be, but she knows it would be good.

He laughs and she smiles at him.

Cielo came to them with two people behind her, both previous victors from four. One was Finnick Odair, the youngest victor yet; and the other was Annie Cresta a victor from two years ago. She swam until every other remaining tribute died. A true survivor in Rama's opinion.

Apparently all victors are friends.

"Ramiro, Valeria." Cielo begins. "May I introduce you to my friends from four, Finnick and Annie."

The pair from four shakes their hands and says hello. Funny, are they here to check their competition? Valeria thinks well if they are they aren't doing very good, their district only got a eighteen year old guy who doesn't look like they wanna be here as well and a twelve year old girl. But probably they have more chances than Vale herself.

"Do you want a piece of advice?" Annie questions "I'll give it to you anyway. Stay calm and low."

"Calm and low?" Rama questions, but the pair walks away. Maybe that can help, it helped her.

The rest of the week was more like a messy blur to Ramiro, with all the training he's done he at least can be sure he won't die of food poisoning, after spending most of his time in the general knowledge area.

Now it's the day of the interview with Caesar where they have their very last chance to get good sponsors. After that only one night separates them from the feared arena.

Their district is the last so they have time to prepare for the interview, to get ready for their speech. Rama is the first of them to go.

"Hello, boy." Caesar begins "How's family back home?"

"My sister is fine, or at least I hope she is." He answers truthfully.

"Just a sister? no parents?"

"Died a long while ago." He replies and he can see a glimmer of sadness in Caeser eyes, just like he gives every sad tribute.

"That's sad. But I am sure she will be very happy if you get back home."

"She will, Caeser, she will."

Their meeting ends with that, and Valeria goes up next.

"So my dear, Valerie." he says but she cuts him off.

"Valeria, with an 'a' at the end, not an 'e'."

"Alright, valeria." he apologizes "why did you volunteer? you're the very first for twelve."

"Because my life can't get worse." She replies snarkily, she always does that with new people.

Rama feels bad when she says those words, her life must have been truly miserable for her to think that the games would be an option. She must had been so alone back then, so sad. He wishes to help her, to take care of her.

"Well, a victor's life will sure be better than anything else." Caesar speaks.

"Not really sure." she mutters, but luckily no one notices or cares.

When she leaves, she and Rama walk back to the tributes apartment, their hands locked together, giving both a sense of safety, and family.

She doesn't want to let go, neither does him.

She thinks she may love him, just a little bit.

He is sure of that.

Valeria can't sleep that night, worry filling her head. It may as well be her very last night alive, and she can not focus on anything else. She wonders if she made the right choice when she volunteered. She isn't sure of that now, or of anything else.

She rembers it was because she didn't think it would be worse than her she is in love with Rama and for her to live he would die. But oh, the world needs him way more than it needs her.

Not that she believes herself to be worthless, but Ramiro has his little sister and she has no one to wait for her back home. What good would it be to return to a house that she will win but that will be always empty?

She decides that night something that will be hard, but she will do all the same.

She will make sure that the best person win.

Valeria Gutierrez will make every thing she can so that Ramiro Ordonez win those stupid games.

Rama meets Valeria that night in the kitchen, not being able to sleep and fully aware she couldn't either.

"Tomorrow." She speaks softly, almost as if she was scared. He is too.

"We should sleep." Ramiro speaks "It's the best we can do."

"I can't." She answers softly and holds his hand. she is sitting on the kitchen floor and pulls him to sit with her, placing her head on his shoulder. "This whole thing is sick."

"I agree." Ramiro speaks "Vale, I need to ask you something."

"Do it."

"Do you wanna be allies?" He begins "It's no good going there alone and we can help each other out."

He rambled a bit and Valeria couldn't help herself but think he was looking rather lovely so she nods as an agreement and smiles. "Wouldn't go without you Tronco."

Their faces are close together now, and Vale thinks that this feeling of butterflies in her stomach is one of the best things she has ever felt. But is when he kisses her, softly almost as if he didn't wanted it to end, that she knows she truly regrets volunteering, because maybe if she didn't, she could have had it back home.

"Sorry." He speaks, but she cuts him of.

"Don't be." She answers.

"I'm not sorry for that." Ramiro corrects. "I'm sorry about the games, and all that."

"We can't change the past, but we can change our future."

He walks away after she said those words, smiling softly at her.

She only sees him again in breakfast, saying goodbye to her in a corner as he takes her hand and whispers "I wish you the best luck."

"Me too."

"See you in there, just wait for me."

"I will."

The arena looks a lot like the woods you'd usually see on the train window going to the Capitol, plain and green, but deadly all the same.

The games lasted for three days, being one of the fastest so far. And the memory of yet, makes Ramiro wish he could forget everything about it and everything about her.

The worst part of it only happened when there were three tributes left, Valeria and him from twelve and a girl from five -whose name he remembers was Caridad or something along those lines,she seemed really nice- but only one person could go home alive, all others only went home in black coffins.

A canon sound blast through the air and they know that there is only the two of them now, only the tragic twelve duo.

When Valeria looks at him he knows, he just knows by the sad look in her eye that it's over.

"Remember that berry you told me not to eat?" she asks and he nods, it was a well known poisonous berry, whom he was surprised she had never heard of.

"Yes." He replies and she walks to him, kissing him on the lips softly, just like he had kissed her a few days ago and when she pulls away, she whispers.

"Do good, and take care of those you love, Tronco."

He tries, oh he tries to stop her, but she is faster and before he can notice she eats that little deadly black berry and falls in his arms, his tears falling on her now lifeless body.

It's sad really and he is devastated, but he knows why she did it. She wants him to make a change, to do something.

And he will.

For himself and for her.

For his sister's future, and for the girl who died so he could come home.

For Valeria.


End file.
